A Guide to the

Compiled by: Tara Mastrangeb and Kayla Payne, June 2012

Descriptive Summary

Repository: Special Collections, Carrier Library, James Madison University

Title: Virginia Wilderness Committee Collection 1969-2009

Collection No.: SC# 5032

Creator: J. James and Elizabeth Murray/ Virginia Wilderness Committee

Extent: Five Record Storage boxes, 2.09 linear feet, plus 56 oversize maps stored within four folders in the map case in Special Collections

Language:English

Abstract: The Virginia Wilderness Committee Collection, 1969-2009, is comprised of 2.09 linear feet of documents pertaining to the organization's people, finances, meetings, newsletters, and projects, which include wilderness legislation, preservation, and protection in Virginia's National Forests and other wild areas.

Administrative Information

Access Restrictions: Parts of the Collection are restricted, please see the Special Collections Librarian

Use Restrictions:The copyright interests in this collection have been transferred to the James Madison University Special Collections Library. For more information, contact the Special Collections Library Reference Desk. (library-special@jmu.edu).

Acquisition Information: J. James and Elizabeth Murray donated this collection in March of 2010.

Provenance: The donor reserves copyright of the following two items until March 1, 2020: Virginia Wilderness Committee: Forty Years, Recollections in 2009 by Jim Murray, and Virginia Wilderness Bill 2000.

Processing Information: Newspaper clippings were photocopied and originals were discarded. Folders have been rearranged into series, but the order imposed by the creator at the folder level has been generally maintained. Photographs were separated from their original folders and placed in their own series.

Biographical/Historical Note

The Virginia Wilderness Committee (VWC) consists of a group of citizens whose goal is to preserve and protect wild areas in Virginia. It was established in May of 1969 during a workshop meeting organized by The Wilderness Society. The first leadership council consisted of John McKnight of Williamsburg as the first chairman, J. James "Jim " Murray, the donor of this collection, as vice-chairman, and Lloyd Sumner as secretary treasurer. The VWC and The Wilderness Society immediately joined forces to found the Virginia Conservation Council in order to serve as an umbrella organization for Virginia's growing number of wilderness-oriented organizations. In 1976, the VWC played a role in adding additional acreage to the Shenandoah National Park wilderness proposal. The VWC also campaigned for the Virginia Wilderness Act of 1984, a major piece of legislation that designated 10 areas for wilderness protection. In the 1990s, some members of Congress opposed additional wilderness designation legislation. During this time, the VWC focused on protecting wild areas, opposing the construction of a gas pipeline through potential future wilderness designated areas, compiling and publishing a memorial book on Ernie Dickerman, an important member of the VWC who passed in 1998, and other projects. In the early 2000s, the VWC was involved in the revision of the management plan for the Thomas Jefferson National Forest, as well as with the Virginia Wilderness Act of 2000. In 2009, the Virginia Ridge and Valley Act was finally passed within an omnibus bill. The VWC had tracked and campaigned for this bill since it was first introduced in 2004. The 2009 Act designated 53,000 acres of land in Virginia as wilderness.

VWC's major concern has been working with Congress in order to pass legislation to designate specific wild areas as "wilderness." With this designation, an area is entitled to a certain level of protection under the Wilderness Act of 1964. The VWC has also been concerned with beach traffic, air quality, water quality, dams, wildlife and endangered species, power lines, wilderness usage, roads, Virginia's National Forests, the National Park Service, oil drilling in the arctic, wilderness trails, eminent domain, etc.

Scope and Content

The Virginia Wilderness Committee Collection, 1969-2009, is comprised of 2.09 linear feet of documents pertaining to the organization's people, finances, meetings, newsletters, and projects, which includes wilderness legislation, preservation, and protection in Virginia's National Forests and other wild areas. The collection contains 56 oversize maps, which are stored in the map case in Special Collections. The collection consists of 14 series, described at folder level.

Series One, VWC Administrative Items, 1969-2009, consists of documents such as the organization's by-laws, membership lists, meeting agendas and minutes, and brochures.

Series Three, VWC Newsletters, 1970-2009, includes three folders of the organization's newsletter mailings.

Series Four, Legislation, 1962-2009 [bulk 1962-1985, 2000-2009], consists of mailing lists, congressional speeches, correspondence, public notices, and documents used by the members of VWC as evidence for building a case in favor of wilderness designation or wild area protective legislation in Virginia.

Series Five, VWC Files on People and Personnel, 1961-2008 [bulk 1998], is composed of documents compiled by the donors on a variety of people important to the organization, including members of Congress, VWC personnel, and important people from other organizations.

Series Six, VWC Files on Related Organizations, 1968-2009, includes documents compiled by the donors on a variety of related organizations and committees that the VWC interacted with.

Series Seven, General Forest Planning and Management Documents, 1970-2001, is comprised of planning reports and agenda relating to managing and creating wilderness areas.

Series Eight, George Washington National Forest, 1969-2009, includes documents related to the VWC's involvement in Washington National Forest's management revisions and plans, as well as many folders compiled by the organization pertaining to key areas within Washington National Forest. Some area folders consist of information about their potential for wilderness designation, special management for the area, campaigns to protect and preserve areas, basic information, maps, and relevant news clippings.

Series Nine, Thomas Jefferson National Forest, 1971-2009, includes documents related to the VWC's involvement in Jefferson National Forest's management revisions and plans, as well as many folders compiled by the organization pertaining to key areas within Jefferson National Forest. Some area folders consist of information about their potential for wilderness designation, special management for the area, campaigns to protect and preserve areas, basic information, maps, and relevant news clippings.

Series Ten, VWC Projects/Interests/Activities, 1970-2007, contains items pertaining to the various projects, interests, and activities of the Virginia Wilderness Committee. These documents relate to general environmental concerns and feature issues that while not directly related to the Virginia Wilderness Committee or Wilderness, are still relevant to the VWC as a whole.

Series Eleven, VWC Miscellaneous, is one folder which contains items that did not fit in other series of the collection.

Series Thirteen, Jumpdrive, contains a USB drive which includes further information about the VWC. Some items were printed from the drive, and a sheet of paper is included in the folder to indicate which items from the drive were printed. About 25% of the items on the drive were printed. These documents include correspondence, fact sheets, meeting minutes for other organizations such as Friends of Shenandoah, and financial and administrative documents.

Series Fourteen, Oversize Maps, contain maps from the Campaign for the Virginia Wilderness Act of 2010. There are four map sets total. These sets are stored in the map case in Special Collections, separated into folders by set. These sets include: map set of the original proposal, 2002, working map set of 2003, forest service working map set of January 2004, forest service working map set of July 2004. These are digitally created maps which feature different areas of wilderness.

Contents

–– committee bylaws with written corrections as well as a finished copy

Membership lists, 1981-1985, 1990-1994 and undated

1:3

–– membership lists with addresses

Annual General Meeting Documents, 1971, 1994, 1997-2007, 2009

1:4

–– minutes, agendas, and officer reports

Buffalo Gap Meetings, 1999-2004 and undated

1:5

–– agenda and notes from meetings

Brochures, undated

1:6

–– letter to officers and VWC brochures

Early Correspondence, 1968-1990

1:7

–– letters and reports from the organization’s early years (70s to late 80s)

Record Statements, 1970-1999

1:8

–– letters and press releases which provide statements regarding the VWC’s position on legislation and events

Further Correspondence and Statements, 1990+

1:9

–– letters and clippings from the 1990s

VWC Press Clippings, 1981-1999

1:10

–– newspaper clippings relating to environmental interests of the VWC

VWC Press Clippings, 2000-2008

1:11

–– newspaper clippings relating to environmental interests of the VWC

Series II: VWC Financial Documents

Box:Folder

Account Ledgers, 1981-1989

1:12

–– Planters Bank and Trust savings passbook and deposit account, Income and Expenses Book beginning June 1, 1981

Financial Reports and Treasury Documents, 1987-1997

1:13

–– handwritten and typed reports and letters from various VWC treasurers: Jo Anne Pierce, David Browning, and Juliana Simpson

Royalty Income Documents, 1985-1998

1:14

–– statements and check/voucher invoices from The East Wood Press and The Globe Pequot Press for book royalties (Hiking Virginia’s National Forests)

Wyss Family Foundation Grants, 1998-2008

1:15

–– correspondence relating to the grant and how grant money was used, as well as annual updates to the foundation of the VWC’s progress, VWC July 2007, December 2008 newsletters, one page about "Friends of Shenandoah Mountain"

–– dated materials relating to the Act, such as: modifications to the act; correspondence and memoranda; testimonies before the Senate and House of Representatives; newspaper clippings

Wilderness Bill Proposals, 1991-1999

1:31

–– publicity relating to the bill

Wilderness Bill Publicity, 2009

1:32

–– correspondence, memoranda, program notes of Conservation Council of Virginia relating to proposed Coastal Wetlands Act for Virginia as well as notes from the Wetlands Study Commission, copies of relevant newspaper clippings, and a copy of Wetlands Bill

–– handwritten notes and letters from Elizabeth; "Virginia Wilderness ---with a capital W" submission to Country Magazine; notes for various presentations to clubs and panels; "Wilderness Advocacy in Virginia", March 2005 for Southern Environmental Law Center writing contest

–– business cards, schedule of events, notes, outline, correspondence, Support H.R.3603, The Central Idaho Economic Development and Recreation Act, Documents pertaining to Wilderness Week, which seems to be a lobbying effort in D.C. and wilderness legislation

Wind Power, 2003

4:44

–– draft for Wind Turbines in West Virginia, correspondence (letters, email, fax), Phase I Avian Risk Assessment for the Mount Storm Wind Power Project, Migration Study at the Backbone Mountain Wind, other proposals and studies related to wind power

–– Typed notes defining "wilderness", its uses, milestones, and possible candidates, Handwritten notes (seem to be from a speech?), F.E.I. at the top, "Wilderness Areas of the Virginia Mountains" – Shenandoah Natl. Park, GWNF, TJNF, "Some Good Candidates for Wilderness Designation", correspondence, (first draft) Public-Private Partnership in Land and Species Preservation by Bob Maranto, FEI, conference Itinerary draft, November 9, 1998 Program– "Competing Interests in Land Management: George Washington and Thomas Jefferson National Forest", Two copies, attached to both copies are biographies for program speakers and an article from Government Executive by Louis Jacobson called "Forest Fight" about logging debates, website printouts ("Issues Common to the National Forests in the Southern Appalachians") and maps

Series XI: VWC Miscellaneous

Box:Folder

This folder is for miscellaneous items that would not fit elsewhere. Such items include: a business card, correspondence, fliers, various newspaper clippings, committee reports, proposals

The donor provided a USB drive, which includes further information about the VWC. Some items were printed from the drive, and a sheet of paper is included in the folder to indicate which items from the drive were printed. Items printed are also listed below.